The selection of completion equipment for artificial lift string for any field in the oil and gas industry is important for the safe and reliable operations of such a field. This is critical to the management and overall profitability of the oil and gas asset, especially in areas where artificial lift is the predominant means of water injection and hydrocarbon production. This paper focuses on why it is important to understand the saline subsurface and the total dissolved solids (TDS) of the environment in which the artificial lift completion is to be deployed and its impact on equipment selection. High concentration of corrosive components in the well fluid such as hydrogen sulfide, chlorine and total dissolved solids makes the well fluid conducive for electron migration. Such migration causes heavy corrosion, especially when dissimilar metals are used in artificial lift well completions. Carbon steel tubulars and casing are easily affected by such corrosive composition and leads to premature failure of artificial lift completions, which poses safety and operational issues. This type of environment is intense in electrical submersible pump completed wells because of the electromagnetic field generated by the current passing through the electrical cable of the pump system. A combination of field and laboratory data gathering, and analysis was utilized to determine the effect of the aggressive components of the produced fluid on electrical submersible pumps assembly. The contributions of the high total dissolved solids in the conductivity of the well fluid, and in the electrochemical process for metal corrosion were analyzed. It was evident from both forms and approaches utilized in the analysis that well fluid becomes an electrolyte that provided the desired path for electron flow, which was enhanced by the magnetic field of the ESP system cable. This paper highlights the integration of three approaches of geochemical analysis of well effluent, Anodic Index differential and tubular internal coating in corrosion prevention and electric submersible pump runlife elongation in wells with corrosive compositions including high total dissolved solids.

Sustaining hydrocarbon production using artificial lifting technology could be daunting to say the least. Over time, both surface and subsurface challenges associated to artificial lift applications and electric submersible pumping systems in particular, that impact hydrocarbon production make the system unappealing and uneconomical for field development. This paper attempts to review the challenges impacting ESP system optimization for sustainable hydrocarbon production in both brown and green fields during the current big data era. The producing environment as well as the ESP components used in field development and production require continuous optimization across the ESP system spectrum. Analysis and diagnosis of the producing well completion is essential to achieving a better optimization and sustainability of the desired production target. A two-approach system optimization is preferred to address the challenges impacting sustainable hydrocarbon production in an ESP completed well. The approach enumerated in the paper relies on the innovative technological advancement of data capturing, segmentation, and integration brought about by the fourth industrial revolution. The approach involves a top-to-bottom optimization in addition to real-time data integration. The increasing sophistication in ESP system platforms’, mobility, surveillance, connectivity, and storage technologies, joined with the ability to process and rapidly analyze data, improve agility, and support real-time on the spot automated decision making. These enhancements allow action execution to overcome the numerous challenges impacting production sustainability in ESP completed wells. This brings about increased and timely engagement between the equipment manufacturer, operator and the well. In addition, there is reduction in well downtime, increased uptime with overall resultant of sustained hydrocarbon production. A comprehensive approach to artificial lift hydrocarbon production optimization in an ESP completed well using data interwoven connectivity is preferred as the best approach to reactivate, boost, and sustain hydrocarbon production in this era of digitalization.

Electrical Submersible Pumps (ESPs) are used to boost production in hydrocarbon and enhance investment recovery in the oil and gas industry is affected by solid particles. Sanding reduces the integrity and reliability of ESPs with enormous consequences. Better knowledge of the performance of Electric Submersible pumps in sand producing well through system failure modelling ensures effective planning and good operational philosophy. Life-failure-data were collated and analysed in this paper using Weibull Distribution to determine the shape (β) and the scale (ή) parameters of ESP system components. The system failure mode analysis carried out highlighted the failure patterns of ESPs. Mechanical based failure components displayed constant failure pattern while electrical based failure components displayed decreasing failure pattern. A simple Reliability Block Diagram is designed to model the system failure. This is simulated to ascertain the reliability, availability and maintainability of ESPs in sand prone wells.

Material compatibility is key to proper equipment design, operation and reliability in both well and artificial lift completion. This paper addresses material compatibility lessons learned from well completion components exposed to harsh hydrocarbon and saline subsurface environments. Dismantle Inspection Failure Analysis (DIFA) was utilized to ascertain the failure root cause for 25 water source wells utilizing Electrical Submersible Pumps (ESPs). Positive Material Identification (PMI) testing was used to identify the cause of 17 of the failed completions — incompatible material selection resulting in completion workover after an average of 562 days of production. Moreover, X-ray Power Diffraction (XRD) and Energy Dispersed Spectroscopy (EDS) analysis were used to characterize deposit samples from the pulled equipment. It was discovered, upon pulling of the failed completions, the tubular pup joint above the ESP pump discharge head contained holes due to corrosion. From the various analysis and tests, it was determined the pup joint (a 7″ tubular) was made of carbon steel while the ESP was made of super duplex steel. Laboratory analysis further proved these two metal materials were not compatible in the harsh high chloride environment, which resulted in galvanized corrosion of the pup-joint above the pump discharge head. Galvanic corrosion is an electrochemical process in which one metal corrodes preferentially to another when both metals are in electrical contact in the presence of an electrolyte. A geochemical analysis of the water from these wells indicated a high concentration of aggressive species including elevated Total Dissolved Solids (TDS), chloride, sulphate and carbonate. The composition is considered highly conductive and highly corrosive to bare carbon steel. Energizing of the ESP power cable provided the electro-magnetic field that aided migration of electrons across the carbon steel of the tubular pup joint and the duplex stainless steel of the pump discharge head. A guideline for selecting two dissimilar metals based on the volts differential across the metals and higher grades of tubular materials were recommended for such a harsh environment. A guideline for selecting dissimilar metals for compatibility — based on the lessons learned from the ESP completions and the recommendations made to improve runlife of ESP completions in harsh high-chloride environment — is presented in this paper. The recommended approach was applied in recompleting the failed and pulled 25 ESP completions utilizing L80 modified 13-chrome and Glass Reinforced Epoxy (GRE) lined tubular according to the guideline work detailed in the paper.

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